--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: We have made it impossible for children…" description: "\"We have made it impossible for children to fall very far—and in so doing, we have robbed them of the joys of climbing high.\" — Megan McArdle" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a3/megan-mcardle-26163_children_we-have-made-it-impossible-for-children_367056.png" --- # We have made it impossible for children to fall very… ![“We have made it impossible for children to fall very far—and in so doing, we have robbed them of the joys of climbing high.” quote by Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a3/megan-mcardle-26163_children_we-have-made-it-impossible-for-children_367056.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a3/megan-mcardle-26163_children_we-have-made-it-impossible-for-children_367056.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a3/megan-mcardle-26163_children_we-have-made-it-impossible-for-children_367056.png) > “We have made it impossible for children to fall very far—and in so doing, we have robbed them of the joys of climbing high.” [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Overprotecting children limits their ability to take risks, which hinders resilience and ambition. **In simple terms:** Overprotection reduces resilience. Key Takeaway Allow safe risk-taking. Themes parenting risk resilience Mood concerned thoughtful Type advice reflective When to use this quote - education - sports - career choices Key Concepts growth mindset risk tolerance Questions to Reflect On - What risks are appropriate for your child? - How can you support their failures? A Different Perspective Children need challenges to develop confidence. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Climbing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/climbing/) [Joy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/joy/) ## Related quotes > [I once tried standing up on my toes to see far out in the distance, but I found that I could see much farther…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-once-tried-standing-up-on-my-toes-to-see-far-out-in-the-distance/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [When you're climbing at high altitudes, life can get pretty miserable.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-hillary/when-you-re-climbing-at-high-altitudes-life-can-get-pretty-miserable/) [Edmund Hillary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-hillary/) > [It is almost impossible for children and youth to find their way through the seas of life without the guiding light of a good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/m-russell-ballard/it-is-almost-impossible-for-children-and-youth-to-find-their-way/) [M. Russell Ballard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/m-russell-ballard/) > [To be the people of God without regeneration, is as impossible as to be the children of men without generation.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-baxter/to-be-the-people-of-god-without-regeneration-is-as-impossible-as-to/) [Richard Baxter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-baxter/) > [It is proper that noble spirits, equipped with truth and enlightened with the Divine intelligence, should arm themselves against dense ignorance by climbing up…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giordano-bruno/it-is-proper-that-noble-spirits-equipped-with-truth-and-enlightened/) [Giordano Bruno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giordano-bruno/) > [To plunder, to lie, to show your arse, are three essentials for climbing high.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aristophanes/to-plunder-to-lie-to-show-your-arse-are-three-essentials-for-climbing/) [Aristophanes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aristophanes/) > [“The apple does not fall far from the tree.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harper-lee/the-apple-does-not-fall-far-from-the-tree/) [Harper Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harper-lee/) > [He was falling between glacial walls, he didn't know how anyone could fall so far away from everyone else in the world. So far…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nelson-algren/he-was-falling-between-glacial-walls-he-didn-t-know-how-anyone-could/) [Nelson Algren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nelson-algren/) > [“It’s about finding your own twisted perfection, letting yourself fall too far and taking a chance. If you’ve done all that. You have no…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abbi-glines/it-s-about-finding-your-own-twisted-perfection-letting-yourself-fall/) [Abbi Glines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abbi-glines/) > [“Jump, if you want to, ‘cause I’ll catch you, girl. I’ll catch you “fore you fall. Go as far inside as you need to,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/jump-if-you-want-to-cause-i-ll-catch-you-girl-i-ll-catch-you-fore-you/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [“Aim for the sun. That way if you miss, at least your arrow will fall far away, and the person it kills will likely…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/brandon-sanderson/aim-for-the-sun-that-way-if-you-miss-at-least-your-arrow-will-fall/) [Brandon Sanderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/brandon-sanderson/) > [Its not up to you how you fall. Its up to you how far you let yourself fall and how long it takes you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/its-not-up-to-you-how-you-fall-its-up-to-you-how-far-you-let-yourself/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“What do you do when you fall far from help?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-beckett/what-do-you-do-when-you-fall-far-from-help/) [Samuel Beckett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-beckett/) > [“who will love you? who will fight? and who will fall far behind?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/birdy-from-skinny-love/who-will-love-you-who-will-fight-and-who-will-fall-far-behind/) Birdy from Skinny Love > [“It takes courage for a fruit to fall far from her tree.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/c-lestine-hitiura-vaite/it-takes-courage-for-a-fruit-to-fall-far-from-her-tree/) Célestine Hitiura Vaite ## More by Megan McArdle > [It is a vast, and pervasive, cognitive mistake to assume that people who agree with you (or disagree) do so on the same criteria…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/it-is-a-vast-and-pervasive-cognitive-mistake-to-assume-that-people/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [“Dweck encourages parents and teachers to praise children for their effort, rather than their intelligence, talent, or looks.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/dweck-encourages-parents-and-teachers-to-praise-children-for-their/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [“If they’re forced into a challenge they don’t feel prepared for, they may even engage in what psychologists call “self-handicapping”: deliberately doing things that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/if-they-re-forced-into-a-challenge-they-don-t-feel-prepared-for-they/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [The up side of down: why failing well is the key to success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/the-up-side-of-down-why-failing-well-is-the-key-to-success/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [“Most of all, learning to fail well means overcoming our natural instincts to blame someone—maybe ourselves—whenever something goes wrong.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/most-of-all-learning-to-fail-well-means-overcoming-our-natural/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [Over the years, I developed a theory about why writers are such procrastinators: We were too good in English class. This sounds crazy, but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/over-the-years-i-developed-a-theory-about-why-writers-are-such/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [“The alternative to villains who have done something wrong is a universe where bad things sometimes happen to people who don’t deserve them.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/the-alternative-to-villains-who-have-done-something-wrong-is-a/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [“...simple things, but each error made the other ones more dangerous, like sticks of kindling to a roaring fire”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/simple-things-but-each-error-made-the-other-ones-more-dangerous-like/) [megan mcardle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [“object is to take lots of small, manageable risks, because that, he says, is the only way to figure out what really works.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/object-is-to-take-lots-of-small-manageable-risks-because-that-he-says/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [If we wanted a program to help the majority of the population, we'd offer loan guarantees to help poor people get access to reliable…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/if-we-wanted-a-program-to-help-the-majority-of-the-population-we-d/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [“If they’re forced into a challenge they don’t feel prepared for, they may even engage in what psychologists call “self-handicapping”: deliberately doing things that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/if-they-re-forced-into-a-challenge-they-don-t-feel-prepared-for-they-2/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [“the people who dislike challenges think that talent is a fixed thing that you’re either born with or not. The people who relish them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/the-people-who-dislike-challenges-think-that-talent-is-a-fixed-thing/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [“Like most people, I couldn't let go of the money we'd wasted. That's why so many people eat awful meals, watch horrible movies, read…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/like-most-people-i-couldn-t-let-go-of-the-money-we-d-wasted-that-s/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [“Writers who don’t produce copy—or leave it so long that they couldn’t possibly produce something good—are giving themselves the perfect excuse for not succeeding.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/writers-who-don-t-produce-copy-or-leave-it-so-long-that-they-couldn-t/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) > [I'd also like us to encourage people to gang rush shooters, rather than following their instincts to hide; if we drilled it into young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/i-d-also-like-us-to-encourage-people-to-gang-rush-shooters-rather/) [Megan McArdle](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) [Explore all 22 Megan McArdle quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/) ## More Children quotes > [I am certain that children always know more than they are able to tell, and that makes the big difference between them and adults,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacques-lusseyran/i-am-certain-that-children-always-know-more-than-they-are-able-to/) [Jacques Lusseyran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacques-lusseyran/) > [Behind every successful child is an adult who believed in him.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-warren/behind-every-successful-child-is-an-adult-who-believed-in-him/) [Rick Warren](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-warren/) > [I believe in freedom to do what you want if you aren't hurting others, but pictures of obese protesters giving their children big gulps.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/philip-defranco/i-believe-in-freedom-to-do-what-you-want-if-you-aren-t-hurting-others/) [Philip DeFranco](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/philip-defranco/) > [If the audience likes your work, if they like you, they don't think whether you are married or have children or not. I made…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dimple-kapadia/if-the-audience-likes-your-work-if-they-like-you-they-don-t-think/) [Dimple Kapadia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dimple-kapadia/) > [It doesnt seem to me strange that children should like the macabre, the sensational, and the forbidden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anthony-hecht/it-doesnt-seem-to-me-strange-that-children-should-like-the-macabre/) [Anthony Hecht](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anthony-hecht/) > [Let children support their parents or be imprisoned.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/let-children-support-their-parents-or-be-imprisoned/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Gratitude isn't just a feeling, it's an action. Expressing gratitude by writing in a journal, taking a photo, or shooting a video creates a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/janice-kaplan/gratitude-isn-t-just-a-feeling-it-s-an-action-expressing-gratitude-by/) [Janice Kaplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/janice-kaplan/) > [My embarrassing confession is that my father is a 'Camelot: The Musical' obsessive. So as a child, when we were going to visit relatives…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-chibnall/my-embarrassing-confession-is-that-my-father-is-a-camelot-the-musical/) [Chris Chibnall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-chibnall/) > [I have many who keep me going, I am very fortunate in this sense. There is nothing like a child who knows more about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/floyd-cooper/i-have-many-who-keep-me-going-i-am-very-fortunate-in-this-sense-there/) [Floyd Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/floyd-cooper/) > [My school was one of the most beautiful places a child can grow up in. You are surrounded by nature - cats, dogs, birds…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amala-akkineni/my-school-was-one-of-the-most-beautiful-places-a-child-can-grow-up-in/) [Amala Akkineni](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amala-akkineni/) > [A lesser complaint: hair extensions. There are moments on 'All My Children' when half the women actors, young and old, seem to be afflicted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/camille-paglia/a-lesser-complaint-hair-extensions-there-are-moments-on-all-my/) [Camille Paglia](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/camille-paglia/) > [As a child, I had a lot of older gay men taking care of me. There's a trust there. I feel like little girls…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/margaret-cho/as-a-child-i-had-a-lot-of-older-gay-men-taking-care-of-me-there-s-a/) [Margaret Cho](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/margaret-cho/) > [If my child had prejudice in his head, I'd be ashamed. I would see it as my failure as a parent.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/salman-rushdie/if-my-child-had-prejudice-in-his-head-i-d-be-ashamed-i-would-see-it/) [Salman Rushdie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/salman-rushdie/) > [“Children's lives are always beginning and adults' lives are always ending. Or is it the opposite? Your childhood is always ending and your adult…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alison-espach/children-s-lives-are-always-beginning-and-adults-lives-are-always/) [Alison Espach](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alison-espach/) > [As a child I was very involved with sports and I knew at age 9 that I wanted to be an Olympic champion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marion-jones/as-a-child-i-was-very-involved-with-sports-and-i-knew-at-age-9-that-i/) [Marion Jones](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marion-jones/) [Browse all 62,396 Children quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "We have made it impossible for children to fall very far—and in so doing, we have robbed them of the joys of climbing high.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Megan McArdle" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/we-have-made-it-impossible-for-children-to-fall-very-far-and-in-so/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Children" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/we-have-made-it-impossible-for-children-to-fall-very-far-and-in-so/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a3/megan-mcardle-26163_children_we-have-made-it-impossible-for-children_367056.png", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a3/megan-mcardle-26163_children_we-have-made-it-impossible-for-children_367056.png", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4a3/megan-mcardle-26163_children_we-have-made-it-impossible-for-children_367056.png", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“We have made it impossible for children to fall very far—and in so doing, we have robbed them of the joys of…” — Megan McArdle", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Megan McArdle", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/megan-mcardle/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "We have made it impossible for...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/we-have-made-it-impossible-for-children-to-fall-very-far-and-in-so/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/megan-mcardle/we-have-made-it-impossible-for-children-to-fall-very-far-and-in-so/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```